What to Watch for in Brooklyn Nets vs. Wizards

The Brooklyn Nets will face off against the Washington Wizards on the road for the second time this season. The Nets blew out the Wizards 129-106 in their previous matchup to earn their second win of the season.

The Nets have lost two straight games after a hot 7-3 stretch which saw them play some of the best defense in the league.

Brooklyn's defense did a solid job of pressuring Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant and keeping the ball out of their hands, but the Nets struggled to protect the interior and account for other players on the opposing team.

The Nets will be without three of their key players in this game: Michael Porter Jr. (illness), Nic Claxton (personal reasons), and Cam Thomas (left hamstring injury management). Egor Demin will be in the lineup after a one-game absence due to a back injury, as this'll be a good opportunity for him to see some extended run.

The Wizards are coming into this game fairly hot for their standards, winning three of their last four games.

Washington closed out 2025 with a 114-113 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, as Alex Sarr led the way with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks.

With no Claxton to help protect the interior, there's a great chance Sarr inflict his dominance down low on both ends of the floor and put up a gaudy stat line.

CJ McCollum and Khris Middleton remain solid scoring threats at this stage of their career, and both could use this game as an opportunity to show the basketball world that they still have plenty left in the tank, especially to contending teams who could draw an interest in trading for them.

Tre Johnson has also been hot, averaging 15.3 points on 50.6% shooting, including 45% from 3-point range, in his last seven games.

One of the biggest underlying themes for this matchup is that it's a tanking battle, as both teams could end the season with one of the worst records in the league.

With the amount of injuries Brooklyn is dealing with, this is a game they could certainly end up losing, which is exactly what the pro-tank portion of this fanbase would want.

Whatever the case may be, Nets coach Jordi Fernandez is still going to expect his players to play hard and compete for 48 minutes and make each and every player earn their right to be on the court.